Developmental Psychology (Research)

Specialisation of: Psychology (research)
Degree: Master of Science in Psychology (Research)
Mode of Study: Full-time
Duration: 2 years
Start date: September and February
Language of instruction: English
Location: Leiden
Croho/isat code: 60395
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The Developmental Psychology specialisation of the Research Master’s in Psychology offers a strong theoretical background to provide the varied knowledge-base needed for a thorough understanding of emotional and cognitive development across childhood and adolescence.
Students will gain hands-on experience with various assessment procedures: self-report, behavioural observation, experimental manipulations, psychophysiological assessment (skin conductance, heart rate, cortisol, etc.), EEG, and fMRI.
The multi-method approach in the training programme is realised in the context of four research programmes.

Career

The master’s programme provides an ideal preparation for students who want to continue with an academic career and obtain a PhD in psychology. The research master’s programme also prepares students for positions where basic or applied psychological research is used to support the development of corporate or public policy. These include research agencies such as TNO, NIA, IOWO, as well as private firms (e.g. software and hardware development, safety control), municipal, and governmental (SCP) institutions focusing on research and consultancy.

What our alumni say

Jonne Oldenburg, PhD student Ghent University

“I wanted to know what makes people tick and to understand their behaviour.”

“I started studying psychology because I was interested in people. I wanted to know what makes them tick, to understand their behaviour. At first my idea was to do this through talking to them as a clinical psychologist. However, during my studies I became more and more interested in doing research on the brain and its workings, because of the fundamental role it plays in determining behaviour and the many mysteries still surrounding it. It was this interest that led me to enroll in the Research Master’s programme in Psychology, a choice that to this day has not once disappointed me.

I am currently a PhD student at Ghent University. I’m doing research in cognitive neuroscience, linking brain activation to behaviour, and so furthering our understanding of human nature. Without the Research Master’s this would not have been possible. It taught me very important research skills and enabled me to do an elaborate internship, equipping me with invaluable assets for the career to which I aspired and in which I have, thanks to my training, already taken my first steps.”